On the road again...

This past weekend, I hit the road for a couple of road trips.

The first was an overnight work trip to Jamestown, NY from Thursday to Friday. I definitely consider these overnight stays to be a perk of my job. This time, I went all by myself (cue the music as I burst into song...Allllll by Myseeeeelf...) I love my family more than words can express, but I am able to show this love to them much more readily when I get some alone time occasionally.

So, I cranked the music and sang a mix of classic rock, oldies Newsboys, and Tim McGraw at the top of my lungs during my four hour road trip. Upon arriving, I found directions to the closest Applebee's, purchased my road trip staple: mouth-watering Buffalo Chicken Salad (thanks to Tami for introducing me to this delight), and then discovered a nearby boat launch right on a lake. Then, as the sun set, I sat at a picnic table, devouring my dinner, while I enjoyed my latest read: John Grisham's "The Testament". Good stuff.

After my presentation on Friday morning (during which the school went into lockdown because of a bomb threat and I was told that I would not be able to leave--until a teacher graciously obtained permission for me to do so), I drove home and immediately met up with Wes and Griffin so that we could head off to Lancaster, PA to visit Wes's high school friend Peter and his wife and three kids.

If you have never been to Lancaster, it's a trip worth taking, especially this time of year. The trees were in full bloom and the fields are green and endless. There is also a sense that you have ventured into another time and place as you cross paths with the Amish and Mennonites, a people who appear unaffected by the changing of times.

Couldn't resist this hot of a horse and carriage at a Benefit Auction that we attended.

We spent the entire day outside on Saturday. Love this shot of Wes and Griffin
after an intense game of tag at the local playground.

That evening, we roasted hot dogs and s'mores over a campfire.
(This is the closest pic I have to a belly shot...more to come soon.)

Did a little outlet shopping at the Hershey outlets on our way home.
And a little outlet picture taking. Loved the flowers.

And that's the latest on the Ehret family happenings. Hope to have an update soon on our journey with Wes's job. In the meantime, we're kind of having a lot of fun!

signs of spring

It's official. Spring is my faaaaavorite season. Probably for the same reason that Christmas Eve is my favorite part of Christmas. It's all the fun plus the anticipation of more to come!

Over the past several days, we've celebrated several first rites of spring. Here are a few highlights:

Griffin's first picnic of the season with his buddy Daniel.

After a cook-out with our friends, Dan and Tonya, we
all headed out for our first ice cream store run.
It was yummy. It was messy. It was awesome.
I'm an avid supporter of our local ice cream stores.

A little moon-gazing with Daddy.

A picnic with Aunt 'Shisha' and Uncle Ryan at the
park where Daddy plays softball. (Aunt Shisha's gonna
love me for posting this pic. That's a strawberry, by the way.)

We also got up early on Saturday morning and hopped in the car for our first yard sale run of the season. The pickings were slim this early, but I'm definitely getting my haul-finding groove on.

Stay tuned. Lots more sunny, out-doorsy, flowery, smiley pics to come!!!!

Oh boy...

Remind me never to use you all as a lifeline if I ever get on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" 'cuz 57% of you were WRONG!

IT'S A BOY!!!!!!

For sure.

And here he is!

Apparently, Ehret men will continue to rule the world.

This morning I was up bright and early with butterflies in my stomach thinking about the events of the day. Here's what I journaled:
Trying to read. Pray. So distracted. TODAY we find out if we are having a boy or a girl! I wish there were some way to prepare myself for this news. Hmmm...

(In an effort to do so, I wrote two letters--one for a son, the other for a daughter.)

Here is my letter to our little boy:

Little Boy,
I dream of life with you,
Reliving the joy of all that little boys love to do:
running, jumping, climbing, laughing, hide n seeking, wrestling with Daddy,
and this time, learning lots of tricks from your big brother,
(the best hiding spots, building big block towers, just to knock them down,
jumping from the top step into Daddy's arms, giving BIG kisses to Mommy, throwing
a football really far, singing 'Cwinkle, Cwinkle Little Star', and bringing joy to all you meet--
just to name a few.)
Anticipating future firsts we have yet to experience:
riding the bus with your big brother on your first day of school, learning
to ride a bike, blow bubbles, whistle, your times tables, first Little League games.
What will your favorite book be? Movie? Kind of music?
Who will your first crush, first girlfriend, first kiss, first heartache be?
Oh boy, I'm already tearing up thinking about your first day of college.
I know you'll hope to fill your Daddy's shoes and make him proud.
And you will.
We will love you forever,
Little Boy.

our journey

There is something beautiful about adversity.

It's as if the clouds get rolled back on our view of God's faithfulness and we
are reminded how completely dependent we are
on Him.

Last week, Wes found these verses in Psalm 119 in the Message
and shared them with me. I liked them so much I made this and
printed it out:

This week, Wes got laid off from work.

On the day we found out, I read this in the book I am currently reading:
"Psalm 124 is an instance of a person who digs deeply into the
trouble and finds there the presence of the God who is on our side.
In the details of the conflict...the majestic greatness
of God becomes revealed. Faith develops out of the most
difficult aspects of our existence, not the easiest. We speak our
words of praise in a world that is hellish... But the content of our
lives is God, not humanity. We are not scavenging in the dark
alleys of the world, poking in its garbage cans for a bare subsistence.
We are traveling in the light, toward God who is rich in mercy and
strong to save...
It is the help we experience, not the hazards we risk, that shapes our days."
-A Long Obedience in the Same Direction
by Eugene Peterson

What else is there to say?

my booty

No, not that kind of booty...

I'm talking about my loot. My catch-of-the-day.

My HAUL!

Friends of ours invited us to join them at a children's fair at our local community college today. There were games and singers and

reptiles

and fire trucks

and a bubbleman (which Griffin LOVED). We were given two raffle tickets when we arrived to put into a drawing. I dismissed the idea since we didn't plan on staying the whole day.

At around 12:45, we joined our friends to watch the bubbleman and they commented that the raffle drawing was being held at 1:00. I replied that I hadn't participated and that, no doubt, they would win it anyway. (They have a knack for getting free stuff...even more than we do.) With about 5 minutes to spare, I decided to just run down and drop my tickets in the basket. Why not?

Well, the rest is history, as they say. I received all sorts of dirty looks from jilted raffle-hopefuls as I walked through the halls carrying the big old basket. I almost felt guilty. Almost.

Mostly just delighted. =)